US comedian cracks cruel ‘jokes’ about rollercoaster victim Shylah Rodden
A US comedian has cracked a series of distasteful jokes about Shylah Rodden, the Melbourne woman who was hit by a rollercoaster last month.
The 26-year-old suffered severe facial and brain injuries after being struck by the 70 km/h Rebel Coaster Ride at the Royal Melbourne Show, and she remains in hospital in a serious condition.
It is believed she had walked onto the tracks to retrieve her phone when she was hit.
But, comedian Anthony Jeselnik seemed to find the situation quite funny while discussing the accident with NFL Network analyst Gregg Rosenthal on their podcast, The Jeselnik & Rosenthal Vanity Project.
“This story is absolutely hilarious to me,” Jeselnik said during the episode, titled ‘Your Luck Is Like A Rollercoaster, Baby-Baby’.
“I bet no one could believe it. I bet she feels dumb.”
Rosenthal then explained how Ms Rodden had only just re-learned how to walk when she was struck, having been involved in a car crash in January 2021 that saw her car collide with a truck and flip over, with Jeselnik bursting into laughter.
“Now you’re wondering why is this funny to us?” Jeselnik said.
“Walking onto a rollercoaster track is a bad idea. If you drop your cell phone, ask someone who works there to get your phone for you. Do not jump onto the rollercoaster tracks.
“She’d gotten hit by a car a few years ago, had to go through physical therapy to be able to walk again. To celebrate learning to walk again… she goes to an amusement park and immediately gets hit by a rollercoaster
“Can you be forgiven because you haven’t been walking around that much that you don’t really know how to walk, and so you think walking onto rollercoaster tracks are fine?
“It’s bad luck but rollercoasters only go in two directions. It’s hard to get hit by them.
“A car, ok anything could have happened, maybe you’re in the street, maybe the car jumped the kerb.
“A rollercoaster, that’s your fault every single time.”
Jeselnik’s comments come amid a growing number taking to social media to criticise Ms Rodden’s actions in the lead-up to the accident, with some claiming that she isn’t a victim and deserves to be in intensive care.
Meanwhile, a friend of Ms Rodden has appealed for prayers for the young woman, who he described as having a “heart of gold”.
“Please pray for Shylah Rodden. Shylah Rodden is one of my best friends [and has a] heart of gold. Shyla has always been there for me and is always there for anyone, not just her friends,” Mr Nawar wrote on Facebook.
“She has suffered a horrible accident at the Melbourne Show and was put in a induced coma. I don’t know her current status but please ask anyone who sees this to make a small prayer for her and her family, even if it’s [as] small as please God help them heal.
“Shylah and her family lost their son/brother a few months ago and were all still grieving. I saw the pain this had on Shylah.”
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